Agriculture, Food, and Food Security - Dragons and Tigers: A Geography of South, East and Southeast Asia - page 135

Table 5-2

Examples of Gender Roles in the Capture Fisheries V alue Chain in Asia

Scale Investment Catch Processing Sales

Small

W omen' s savings.

B oat owners are
wealthy and older
men.

W omen and men dry
fish.

W omen and men sell in
local markets and to
contractors for
national and
international markets.

China: both women
and men invest. W omen might work in

processing factory ,
where they are paid
less than men and are
the first to be let go .

Crews comprise adult
and young men.

Sales are more likely
to be controlled by
men in “conservative”
areas.

W omen and men mend
nets.

W omen collect shell-
fish.

Middlemen and
individuals higher on
the value chain make
more profit.

Men might control
family income.

Source: Gender in Agriculture Sourcebook . World Bank, 2009.

America). A considerable segment of this market is in the
hands of large producers, supported by external capital,
and destined for the international market. However,
Bangladesh is an exception. Here, most shrimp produc-
tion is in the hands of small producers although process-
ing is completed in factories. As many as 1.2 million
individuals are involved in the shrimp value chain in
Bangladesh and another 4.8 million households are indi-
rectly dependent on it for their livelihoods.
Profits from Bangladeshi shrimp exports are not
shared equally throughout the chain. Middlemen and ex-
porters realize more money than shrimp farmers and fry
(baby shrimp) catchers, who are often locked in a cycle of
debt with those further along the chain. The chain is also
a highly sex-segmented market, with women and men re-
ceiving different wages for the work they do. For exam-
ple, women fry catchers and sorters earn about 64 percent
of men' s earnings. Women are also concentrated in the
least secure nodes of the shrimp chain—undertaking var-
ious low-paid tasks in and out of the processing plants.
Increased mechanization can radically alter the
value-chain system. Motorization and mechanization
of fishing vessels in the Indian states of Maharashtra
and Orissa led to a concentration of fish landings at
fewer harbors and landing sites and, in some cases, re-
sulted in the takeover of the fish trade by merchants

who were all men. Many women were displaced from
fish retailing. Moreover, mechanization of any part of
the system typically leads to job losses, and women are
the first to be let go. This is particularly the case in pro-
cessing factories.

Changing Asian Diets

Figure 5-10 shows the traditional Asian diet, which con-
sists of much less protein than Western diets and places
a greater emphasis on grains, vegetables, and fish. How-
ever, rapid economic and income growth, urbanization,
and globalization are leading to a dramatic shift in Asian
food consumption toward more meat and dairy products—
significant components of Western diets. Expansion of
global interconnectedness of urban middle classes is the
driving force behind the convergence of diets. Also, the
dissemination of supermarket and fast-food chains is
reinforcing this trend.
Changes in Asian food demands are characterized by
the following:
Reduced consumption of rice
• Increased consumption of wheat and wheat-based

products such as bread

Increased diversity of food groups consumed •